Acadia Is Gone
by Krys King-Burch
Summary: A short story a wrote for Health Class in Grade 10


I woke up in a white room. I could hear the muffled voices of many people around me and the sound of beeping machines. As my hearing and sight cleared, I realized I was in the hospital. Next to my bed, I saw my parents. As my mom saw my open eyes, she jumped out of her seat and called the doctor. He came rushing in. "Keeler. Keeler, can you hear me?" The doctor asked, shining a light in my eyes. "Blink twice for yes." I blinked twice, then tried to speak, but couldn't. "Don't try to speak, you have an intubation tube down your throat. You got a satisfactory score on the Weaning Scale, so we're going to take the tube out, ok?" I blinked twice again. "Alright," he said, gripping the tube, "I need you to take a big breath." I took a deep breath and he slowly pulled the tube out of my throat. Once it was out, it sent me into a coughing fit. A nurse brought me a cup of water and I downed it like there was no tomorrow. "What happened? Is Acadia ok?" I asked in a raspy voice. My mom looked at me with tears in her eyes. "Would you like me to tell her?" the doctor asked. My mom shook her head. "Can we be alone for a minute?" She asked, looking at the doctor and my father. "Of course." The doctor said and walked out. My dad came over and kissed my forehead then followed him. "Mom, what's going on?" I asked, looking at her. She sat on the edge of my bed and took my hand in hers. "Keeler...when your car flipped over, Acadia was ejected...she was killed instantly." My entire body went numb. My best friend was dead. And it was my fault. "N-no. No. She can't...she can't be dead. Please, she can't be! This isn't funny mom!" She grabbed my face in her hands and made me look into her teary eyes. "I am not kidding, Keeler. Acadia is...dead." I started sobbing. My mom just pulled me close to her and held me. "W-where are her parents?" I asked. My mom stood up and walked out. When the door opened again, I saw the grief-stricken face of my best friend's mother. There, in front of me, stood a broken woman who had lost her only child because I had made a stupid mistake. As she walked over to me, I braced myself for the worst. But, instead she hugged me tightly and sobbed. I threw my arms around her shoulders and sobbed as well. "I am so sorry, Mrs. Casselman. This is all my fault!" I forced out between sobs. She pulled back and held me at arms length. "Yes, Keeler. It is. But, we all make mistakes. Hating you for what happened to Acadia won't bring her back, and I know that isn't what she would want. We all need to be here for each other." I brought her in for another hug.

A few days later, I was released from the hospital. I was brought to the courthouse the day after my discharge for my hearing. In the end, I was convicted of Vehicular Manslaughter and sentenced to two years in a juvenile detention center.

By the time I finished my sentence, I was 18 years old. My mom brought me home and decided that she would put me back in school in the fall.

When fall came, my mom dropped me off in front of the school. As I walked in, I saw all of the old familiar faces of my classmates; familiar faces that held glares and disappointed expressions rather than welcoming smiles. Of course I expected nothing less than what I got. All throughout the day I had signs taped to me that said 'murderer' or 'drunk' and you would not believe the names people called me.

After enduring the torture from my classmates for several weeks, I had finally had enough. It was a Friday night and my parents were out with their friends. My phone was ringing nonstop with hate messages from old friends and some of Acadia's family members that were much less forgiving than her mom. I slowly stood up from my place on the couch, and went into my dad's office. I pulled out a piece of paper and a pen and began writing.

_It's not fair that I chose to drink and drive and Acadia was the one _

_who got punished. It's not fair that I'm alive and she's not here. _

_I can't go on another day knowing that I am the cause of so much _

_pain and suffering amongst the town. I hope that by ending my_

_life, I make up for the damage that I had no right to cause. Once _

_again, I cannot express how sorry I am for taking away Acadia _

_before her life even really began. I should have been the one to die _

_that night. Not her. She would have gone on to do great things. _

_Please forgive me,_

_Keeler_

I choked back a sob as I folded the letter and put it on the kitchen table. I walked over to where my parents "hid" the alcohol and grabbed a bottle of vodka. Then, I slowly made my way to the bathroom and opened the medicine cabinet. I pulled out the bottle of Benadryl, popped a few pills in my mouth, and took a large swig from the bottle of vodka. I sat in the corner and patiently waited my death. The last thing I remember was the sound of my parents frantically searching around the house for me. My mother was the one to find my body.


End file.
